


Nā Lāne o Pele

by Markuse88



Series: Markuse88 Inktober 2019 [13]
Category: Hawaii Five-0 (2010)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Blood and Injury, First Kiss, Getting Together, Implied Sexual Content, Light Angst, M/M, Major Character Injury, Supernatural Elements, Temporary Character Death, non-sexual voyeurism
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-11-17
Updated: 2019-11-17
Packaged: 2021-02-07 15:48:04
Rating: Mature
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,550
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21460534
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Markuse88/pseuds/Markuse88
Summary: Danny and Steve are trapped and injured in a warehouse with fire and destruction closing in fast. Will they make it out alive or will they succumb to their injuries and the kiss of flame?Little do they know that ancient and mysterious forces are at work that will changes their lives forever.( I wear this is better than the Summary. I suck at these. Also please read the notes at the start and end of the story!)
Relationships: Steve McGarrett/Danny "Danno" Williams
Series: Markuse88 Inktober 2019 [13]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1501292
Comments: 15
Kudos: 130





	Nā Lāne o Pele

**Author's Note:**

> This was written for the 2019 Inktober list. The prompt is Ash. This is self-edited so all mistakes are mine. Beta-read for content by the amazing Cowandcalf. A super-duper MEGA level thanks go out to Cowandcalf because she also inspired the end of this story! I would love to hear your thoughts and I hope you enjoy. Also please feel free to offer suggestions for tags as I tend to come up blank.  
For a glossary of Terms/Translations, (provided sketchily by Google Translate and my own research), see the endnotes.
> 
> The temporary character death is non-graphic and over very quick. Hope that doesn't turn you off the story.

_’If there is a Hell it can’t be worse than this._’ Danny thought, nigh hysterically, as he stumbled through the burning warehouse. Fire and smoke was everywhere, literally _everywhere_, and was spreading fast. Danny knew he was in bad shape. His clothes were scorched, still smoking in places, and he could feel numerous burns on his arms, hands, face, and scalp. His chest ached, he suspected broken ribs, to say nothing of the way his lungs burned from the hot, dry, and chemical-filled air. Danny tucked his mouth and nose into his elbow as he moved quickly around patches of burning floor and debris. He hoped that the action would provide some protection from the smoke and irritant tainted air but every few breaths were still followed by coughs that tore at his abused lungs and made his chest feel like it was being ripped apart.

“Steve!” Danny’s shout was more of a croak. He coughed again and tasted blood. Danny didn’t know what had happened. They had gotten an anonymous tip that some drug runners were hiding out in this warehouse, a derelict place half-buried in the jungle near Waimanalo, and had decided to check it out. Neither of them had expected to find anything, the case the drug runners were involved in was months old and more than cold, so they hadn’t bothered to call in back up. For once Danny hadn’t even argued the point. It didn’t help that the tip had come in while Five-0 was in the middle of a no lead double homicide. If they survived this Danny was going to blame his stupidity on preoccupation with the murders.

Everything had been fine. They cleared the outside, no cars, tracks, or other signs that anyone had been there in months. If not more. It was after making their way inside that things had gone wrong. For a warehouse that hadn’t been used in years, it was full of wooden crates, stacks and stacks of wooden pallets and numerous barrels. As they moved further in, back to back while checking for signs of life, the smell of gas and kerosene hit Danny like a ton of bricks. He had turned to grab Steve, who wore an expression of mixed alarm and panic that Danny knew was mirrored on his own face, but before he could the world went black with a surge of heat and sound against his back.

When he came to sometime later the destruction around him had pointed to some sort of bomb. The doors Danny had been able to find in his search for Steve were either blocked or sealed shut. It didn’t matter though, he wasn’t leaving without Steve, without his partner. Sweat, dirt, and God knew what else, stung his eyes and the building heat was making it harder and harder for him to breathe.

“Steve!” Danny forced the plea past his wrecked throat before being overcome by a coughing fit. Pain raced through his head, throat, and chest making Danny gasp, unprotected, for breath. Hot, smoky air scorched his throat and filled his lungs; choking him and sending him to his knees. The world around him rocked and heat scorched his back. Acting on instinct long ingrained in him he stifled a cry of pain and rolled on to his side, hopefully away from the source of the flame, to try and smother the flames he felt licking at his back.

When he was sure the flames were out, leaving behind raw and sensitive skin, he rolled carefully onto his stomach. Ignoring the renewed pain in his chest and back he tried to push himself up, fire was coming up fast behind him from the section of roof that had fallen in, but found that he didn’t have the strength to make it to his feet.

Danny got his forearms under him and together with his knees managed to drag himself along. Dirt and debris dug into his skin, but he could still feel the fire gaining on him. He didn’t dare look back for fear of losing himself to panic and instead searched desperately around for something, anything, he could use to hoist himself back up.

“Danno!” Danny heard Steve shout just as he felt flames licking at his pants.

“Steve.” He croaked out, barely more than a whisper.

***

Steve used his right arm to yank off what was left of his shirt, ignoring the pain from jostling his limp and useless left, and batted at the flames taking root on Danny slacks. With that done, Steve took a moment to check Danny’s condition. Fire was closing in all around them, heat and smoke making it difficult to breathe, to think, but he had to know where it was safest to touch his partner.

Danny…Danny was a mess. The back of his shirt was torn and scorched, the skin under it burned in varying degrees. His hair was scorched, in some places completely burned away, and his arms were littered with burns and cuts matted with dirt and debris. Danny had obviously suffered worse than he had.

The explosion that had lit the warehouse had thrown them both. Steve had been sent into a wall, dislocating his left shoulder and give him a concussion, and he woke up to fire eating at his shirt and pants. A head wound was leaking blood into his eye so everything was tinged red. Once he had put himself out he had tried to set his shoulder but his coordination was off and couldn’t make it work. Once he had given that up as a lost cause he went on the hunt for Danny. Somehow they had ended up on opposite ends of the medium-sized warehouse.

Steve didn’t have time to think about it though, the building was starting to fall in and there were still barrels around the wall, that Steve was sure held more explosives or accelerant, that had yet to catch. He didn’t want to admit it but their chances of escape were already slim, all the doors he had seen were impassable, but if he was right about those barrels it could get worse.

“Danny…Danny, can you hear me? I need to know if you can walk, can stand. Danno, come on answer me.” Steve all but begged as he knealt by Danny’s head.

“D...dunno…can’t get up. Ribs…busted.” Danny’s voice was a harsh rasp as he turned his head to him. Steve immediately saw the blood on Danny’s lips.

“Alright Danno…I’m gonna get you up and we’re gonna get out of here. It’s gonna hurt and I’m sorry.” Steve spoke fast and Danny nodded weakly. Already pulling his arms in to try and push up.

Steve girded himself, this was going to be painful for the both of them, before sliding his good arm under Danny's waist. Trying to be mindful of his ribs he managed to help Danny up on his hands and knees. Danny had barely made a sound the entire time and when Steve realized it was because he had his bottom lip clenched between his teeth his heart broke even more.

“Alright Danny, that’s it, put your arms around my neck and I’ll hoist you up.” Steve ordered, eyeing a row of flame not even a foot away, and Danny obeyed weakly. With Danny’s arms around his neck, Steve wrapped his good arm around Danny’s waist and forced them both to their feet.

With his good arm around Danny’s shoulders and Danny holding on to him around his chest Steve started to maneuver them away from the fire closing in on them. Danny had said he couldn’t get up on his own but with Steve there to anchor him he appeared able to keep up. It was still slow going though. Oily smoke was filling the air and Steve couldn’t see any way out. Steve steered them around burning debris, wood pallets and ceiling rafters, but it was no use. Whoever had laid this trap, because Steve realized now that was exactly what this was, had made sure it was impossible to get out.

“Steve…Steve…leave me here…get out…tell my babies…Love them.” Danny’s words were barely more than a whisper but they tore at Steve’s soul. Danny’s arms started to loosen around him but he clutched Danny tighter around the shoulders in response.

“Fuck that…we’re getting out of here together Danny. I’d never leave you. No Matter what. You…you got to hold on.” Steve ordered and Danny rasped something he couldn’t hear but his arms tightened fractionally around him again.

Through the haze, Steve saw a door, unobstructed, on the far side of the room. The path there was relatively clear and Steve put the last of his energy into getting to it.

“Damn it…no, no, no, no.” The last of Steve’s hope shriveled up once they reached the door. It was _welded_ shut.

“s’okay Steve. S’done.” Danny slurred and let go of him, collapsing onto the floor, leaned up against the wall.

“Danny…Danny, we can’t stop.” Steve hit his knees and tried to get Danny back up.

“Steve…look around…babe, there’s no way out. Just…Just stay with me.” Danny grabbed on to him and pulled him close. Steve went willingly and pulled Danny to his chest with his good arm.

“I’m sorry Danny…I’m so sorry…we…_I_ should have waited. Now…now…Danny, I’m so sorry.” The ceiling above them creaked and tears pricked his eyes. Danny wrapped his arms around him and held him tight, face buried in his chest.

“I did it too Steve…It’s done…I’m sorry too…should have told you before.” Danny whispered as the fire got closer.

“Told me what Danny?” Steve asked, moving so his back was to the encroaching flames.

“Love you, Steve…loved for…long, long time. Should have told you.” Danny confessed and Steve felt a press of lips against his chest. Steve choked back a sob and pressed a kiss to the crown of Danny’s head.

“It’s Ok Danno…I never told you either. I love you too Danny. I love you so much. I love you, I love you, I love you.” Steve repeated over and over as the ceiling creaked above them, louder this time, then with a deafening crack and blistering heat the world went dark.

***

Dark was falling but it didn’t bother the young Hawaiian woman. Nothing existed in the darkness that didn’t exist in the light and nothing existed in either that worried her. Cinders and dust swirled around the bottom of her red muumuu dress as she picked her way through the desolation. 

In places, there were piles of wood and metal still burning low. In others, only smoldering heaps remained. It didn’t matter though. Heat and fire posed no threat to her.

“Come ‘Uhane, do not dawdle. We don’t want to keep our new friends waiting.” She called to a small dog that was nosing around some barrels behind her. At her words though the fluffy white mutt trotted over and followed at her side.

“They should be right around here.” She spoke to herself as she and ‘Uhane moved through the destroyed building. A moment later she found what she was looking for, a pile of wood that had once been rafters with a large piece of sheet metal draped over it like a grotesque tent.

“‘Uhane, if you please.” She gestured to the metal and the little dog latched onto a corner of the metal. With a growl and a shake of his head the little dog whipped the metal away, sending it across the room to clatter against the wall.

“Good boy ‘Uhane.” The woman smiled down at her companion before turning her eyes back to the pile of wood. It was charred and still smoking in places. With a wave of her hands, as though she were parting a curtain, the beams ignited. They burned from within in a white-hot glow for an instant before crumbling into ash.

Beneath the now disintegrated wood hovered two sun-bright orbs above the charred remains of two men.

“There you are my beauties.” She reached out to cradle the orbs but before she could take them in her hands they moved away.

She turned to follow their path only to find them hovering between her and a man formed of shadows and seawater.

“These two belong to me Kanaloa. Steven and Daniel protected _my_ islands and were taken by _my_ element. They belong with me, as my spirit warriors and companions.” She ordered the man in a cold tone. Beside her ‘Uhane growled in a rumble that belayed his size.

“You have no right to the dead Pele,” Kanaloa spoke in a voice like a storm on a midnight sea, “These two have passed beyond your reach and will go into Lani where they belong.”

Pele knew that Kanaloa was right, technically, but she had no intention of bowing to him. She also knew that, despite her own mighty powers, Kanaloa could likely best her if he wished should she choose to challenge him. Still though, Pele was not known for her graciousness. If she could not claim Steven and Daniel she could at least spite Kanaloa.

“‘Uhane, NOW.” Pele ordered and with a high pitched bark, the mutt jumped _through_ Kanaloa, dispersing the saltwater and shadows that had made up his body. It would take Kanaloa a moment to reform, especially with ‘Uhane running to and fro spreading the briny water across the soot-stained floor. For extra security though Pele cast up a ring of molten fire around the orbs of Steven and Daniel’s spirits. Kanaloa would not be able to pass through the ring without harming himself, but that would not hold him back for long. Measures in place Pele turned back to the physical remains of the two men.

Arms outstretched above the two corpses and hands aglow with molten light Pele called on every ounce of her powers. From ash and cinders she called up flesh and blood, reformed bone and organs, knit together muscle, ligaments, nerves and skin. With a final push of energy the two men reformed, bare of clothing but whole and breathing with beating hearts. A moment after her work was completed a high pitched whine drew her attention. Pele turned just in time to see her dear ‘Uhane come flying through the ring of fire to land in a heap at her feet. ‘Uhane was, of course, unharmed and immediately stood, growling and gnashing his teeth toward the ring.

“Pele, what foolishness have you wrought?!” Kanaloa’s voice echoed like thunder around her as her ring was shattered into scintillating sparks before dispersing. In its wake stood Kanaloa, the sea of is reformed body churning like an angry ocean

“It seems Kanaloa that we will both be leaving here without our prize.” Pele smirked as Kanaloa moved to her side to behold the naked but obviously alive forms of Steve and Danny. The two men lay side by side, dirty, but whole and unmarred by the destruction around them.

Kanaloa turned on her and in his rage seemed to grow twice in size. Pele though stood her ground and was unafraid. Kanaloa could rage all he wanted but there was nothing that could undo what she had done. It was better this way. Hawaii was not ready to be without two of its favored and most zealous protectors.

“There will be consequences to this folly Pele and you will be held responsible for them.” Kanaloa told her in a deadly whisper. Pele though was unconcerned. What was done was done. Turning away from Kanaloa she gathered the two spirits in her hands. For a moment she cradled them to her, they were warm and pulsed in time with one another like twin heartbeats, before placing them back into their bodies. Pele watched as the two men glowed brightly for a moment as their spirits once more took root in flesh and bone. When the glow faded and their breathing deepened into sleep Pele turned away.

“Come ‘Uhane, our work is done.” With that Pele, ‘Uhane in tow, picked her way back through the warehouse without giving Kanaloa a second glance.

***

Kanaloa watched Pele and her mutt walk away until they vanished in a wisp of smoke before turning back to the men she had resurrected. He had not wished for the two men to die. They were both held in great esteem by the just and the good of Hawaii. They were fierce protectors of the Islands and their people. But it was not his place, or the place of any other, to defy the course of life and death. He did not know what consequence there would be for Pele’s actions. If they would befall her or the two men that would soon stir into wakefulness. Perhaps both. But Kanaloa was sure they would exist. Wary and weary, and perhaps a bit happy, Kanaloa turned from the two men and made his way back to the sea.

*** 

Danny woke from the chill across his skin. His back popped as he sat up to take stock of his surroundings. Danny…Danny didn’t know what in the _hell_ was going on or where he was. All he knew was that he was butt-fucking _naked_ and covered in filth. As his eyes adjusted he realized two things. One, he was sitting in what looked like the burned-out husk of a warehouse. Two, Steve was laid out next to him equally naked and filthy.

“Steve, Steve wake up.” Danny rasped, throat dry, as he shook Steve’s shoulder. It took a moment but Steve eventually stirred and sat up.

“Dan…Danno,” Steve coughed out, “What’s going on…why are we _naked_?” Steve’s question was hoarse as he moved his hands to cover his privates. If Danny was more coherent and his body hurt less he would find that funny. Instead, though he just moved his hands to mirror Steve.

“I…I dunno. I just woke up and we were here. Everything is so fucking fuzzy in my head. I can’t remember anything.” Danny replied as panic began to creep up his spine. There were only a few reasons for them to be naked in a burnt-out building and none of them were good.

“I…I remember the case…the double homicide. Then…then we got a tip about some drug runners in a warehouse…fuck is _this_ the warehouse? How did we get here?” Steve’s voice held the barest of a hysterical edge as he spoke. Danny had to fight the instinct to reach out and comfort his partner. His brain was starting to boot up a little more and with it his sense of embarrassment. A hand on the shoulder while naked would be awkward enough, said hand having just been touching his junk was a whole different can of worms.

“I don’t know babe. We’ll figure it out…let’s…let’s just get out of here. Can you stand?” Danny asked before wondering if _he_ could stand up. Other than a full-body ache everything felt ok.

“Yea…yea I think so.” Steve replied a moment later. By unspoken agreement, the two of them averted their eyes and stumbled to their feet. Once they were stable, ish, and back to cradling their privates the two moved through the burnt-out remains of the building.

As they picked their way around the wreckage toward a large hole in the wall Danny taxed his brain for an answer. He remembered Steve getting the tip on the drug runners and the tense silence as they left the homicide case to Lou, Adam, and the kids while they headed to check it out.

There was more, he was sure of it, but every time he reached for the memories they slipped away into the fog in his head. Was _this_ the warehouse? And if so what had happened to it? Was it burned up when they got there or had it happened after they arrived? Either way why were they stripped and dumped inside of it? Had they been attacked, drugged or…assaulted? Danny’s mind shied from the last thought but he couldn’t deny the possibility. No matter how remote. As they walked he mentally took stock of his body again. He hurt all over but it was more like the ache you had with the Flu or similar illnesses. More importantly, in his mind, there was no pain centered in his groin or his ass. It was inconclusive but Danny took comfort in it none the less.

“Steve…how…how are you feeling?” The question popped out before he could stop it and the way Steve stumbled for a moment made him realize Steve knew exactly what he was asking.

“I feel like I got hit by a truck but…I dunno what happened to us Danny but I don’t think we were raped.” Steve’s voice was a low rasp but held a surety that made Danny’s stomach unclench a bit.

Once they made it out of the building Danny was disheartened to realize his car was nowhere in sight. 

“It looks like we’re walking.” Steve said with a sigh. Danny just nodded. The two kept up a brisk pace and Danny used the time to continue to tax his memory for what the hell had happened. Danny was so engrossed in his thoughts that he didn’t register the voices at first. When he finally did he realized that he could here Lou In the distance. A look at Steve confirmed that he too had heard it. The two of them sped up as fast as they could without running. They rounded a corner and found Lou and Adam in a small parking lot with Danny’s car. Adam was obviously inspecting the vehicle for clues while Lou was on the phone.

“I want CSU out here to process the car,” Lou was saying, back to them. “I want HPD out here with dogs and a fire crew for the warehouse. We haven’t been up there yet but it looks like it’s burnt out….” Lou turned then and dropped his phone as his eyes landed on them.

Before Danny could do or say anything Lou was in front of them and he was smashed simultaneously into Steve’s side and Lou’s chest as the big man pulled them into a hug.

“Holy hell what happened to you two? You’ve been gone for hours and haven’t answered your phones.” Lou rambled, a bit breathlessly, but Danny only paid him half attention. The rest of his focus was on the hot tingle of his skin where it was pressed to Steve’s.

Danny was still reeling from the feeling when Lou let them go to yell at Adam to get blankets for them. A moment later they were wrapped in separate shock blankets, each member of the team carried an emergency supply kit in their personal vehicles, and sipping from bottles of water. Lou was back on the phone, canceling the dogs and search party and replacing them with an ambulance, while Adam asked them what had happened.

“We don’t know man,” Steve was telling him, brow furrowed, “Both of our memories are fuzzy. I remember the case we were on, the call about the drug runners, then getting here. After that…nothing. Then we woke up naked and dirty in that warehouse.” Frustration colored Steve’s voice and Danny leaned against his side, hoping to comfort him. Unanswered questions gnawed at Steve far more than they did him.

Don’t get him wrong, Danny wanted to know what the hell happened too, but Steve was likely to go to hell and back to get answers. Adam too looked befuddled but was taking notes. Before he could ask another question Lou was there next to them.

“I just got off with Tani and Junior, they’re following a lead on the homicide. CSU is on its way to comb through that warehouse and I’ve got a bus coming to take you two to the hospital.” Lou told them and Steve shook his head.

“We don’t need a hospital Lou. We just need a hot shower and some clothes and to figure out what happened.” Steve told them but Adam intervened.

“Steve…the best way to do that, for you two, is to get to the hospital and get checked out. You said it yourself your memories are out of whack. You could have been drugged or have internal injuries. Not to mention we have no idea what, if any, chemicals were floating around in that place. I’ll stay here with CSU and meet you at the hospital with Danny’s car later. Lou can meet up with Tani and Junior on the homicides. You two need to take care of yourselves.” Adam told them, looking at Lou for confirmation on his proposed course of action. Lou voiced is agreement and Danny could tell by the sag of Steve’s shoulders he was going to give in.

Thirty minutes later they were bundled into the back of an ambulance and on the way to the nearest hospital. Danny sat flush next to Steve, hoping to provide some comfort via proximity. The entire trip Danny tried to ignore the desire to have another brush of skin to skin contact. The strange heat he had felt before was still fresh in his mind.

***

Steve watched his team, his Ohana, in the backyard through the window. It was Saturday evening and they were getting ready to eat again.

It had been a long six days since he and Danny had, somehow, survived the warehouse fire. That first day he and Danny had let themselves be admitted to the hospital for tests. It ground at Steve but they had needed answers. Answers though had been in short supply. After physical workups, blood and urine tests, and even sexual assault tests, they had been released the following day with nothing more than body aches, minor dehydration and one degree above normal temperatures.

With no signs of head trauma or drugs, the doctors were at a loss to explain their memory loss. The only theory that they could pose was that _something_ had happened to them and they were repressing the memory. Neither he nor Danny had any idea what said event could be. CSU’s investigation of the warehouse hadn’t turned up anything useful in that respect either. Their guns, phones, and other personal effects, save for their clothes, had been found throughout the warehouse. Including Danny’s car keys. But any DNA evidence or signs of a struggle had been obliterated by the fire. They had determined though that the explosion, because apparently that was what had started the fires, had been triggered by motion detectors. In the end, it seemed like the mystery of how he and Danny had survived would remain just that, a mystery.

Mystery or not though when he and Danny had been released from the hospital the Governor had insisted on pulling the two of them from the field for a few days, just to make sure they were ok. Both he and Danny had voiced upset with the order but the Governor hadn’t been swayed. In the end, the two of them spent the following three days relegated to office work and support with Jerry while the rest of the team ran both investigations. Which in the end turned out to be a single case. While running down information on the burnt-out warehouse, as well as the device that had triggered the explosion, they had found a paper trail leading to another warehouse. A raid on the second warehouse by the Team and SWAT had yielded the aforementioned drug runners. The few members that survived the raid, along with evidence from the premises, had linked the two cases together. The double homicide along with the anonymous tip had been orchestrated to divide and cripple Five-0. It was only sheer coincidence that Danny and he had been the ones to investigate the tip. The gang hadn’t had anyone on the ground at the scene of the fire, nor did they have eyes inside it, so while they had closed both cases they were still short on answers.

Steve’s eyes found Danny, standing at the grill with Lou, and his whole body warmed. He and Danny hadn’t talked about the fire since that first night in the hospital. At first, they had been too busy trying to close the case and get answers. Once it was done Danny had taken a few days to be with his kids and Steve hadn’t wanted to interrupt the family time. Now though Danny was here, along with the rest of the team, and Steve was hoping that at some point they could talk.

The Team had started showing up around noon, starting with Tani. She had brought a six-pack and a bag of groceries, ostensibly to hang out with Junior. Half an hour later though Lou and Adam had arrived with more drinks and foodstuffs. Again with the excuse of “just visiting”. By the time Jerry showed up, with a radio and various card games, the pretense of visiting had been given up on and they had settled into a barbeque. Danny had been the last to arrive, around one-thirty, after returning the kids to Rachel. At first he had been worried, asking Steve why he had been so vague in his text to come over.

When Steve had expressed confusion, because he hadn’t texted Danny, they had been at another loss as Danny’s phone clearly showed a message from Steve. That’s when Steve had gone looking for Junior, remembering the younger man’s squirrely behavior from earlier that day. Once confronted Junior gave up fast, pointing out that it had been Tani’s idea. It was then that Steve realized he hadn’t secured his new phone yet. In the end, Steve had laughed it off, largely because Junior looked so nervous. Danny had held on to his annoyance for a bit longer, only because if he had known about the party he would have brought the kids instead of taking them back to Rachel.

“Steve, you gonna bring the fajita stuff out anytime soon?” Tani’s voice brought him out of his musings and Steve remembered why he was in the house to begin with. He was supposed to be retrieving a pan of peppers, onions, and her secret blend of spices. She had taken it out of the oven then promptly forgot about it to go and scold Junior about something he had said about her cooking skills. Steve grabbed the pan and headed back outside when she called again.

“I _just_ took it out of the oven so be careful.” Steve froze at her sentence and looked down at the pan in his hand. The contents were still steaming, with the juices still bubbling, but Steve…Steve didn’t feel a thing. Hurriedly he put the pan back down and inspected his hand. His skin was a light pink, which was quickly fading back to its normal color, but there was no sign of damage. Shaken, Steve grabbed a potholder and picked the pan up again and took it outside. He put the pan on the table and tried to put it out of his mind.

He couldn’t do it though. As the evening went on his mind kept coming back to that moment, along with several others that had happened the last few days. Things he hadn’t given a thought to until now. Fresh coffee that should have been hot was only lukewarm at best. Showers where he had cut the cold water entirely because it didn’t feel hot enough. Even the bracing chill of the water when he first jumped into the ocean had been replaced with a feeling like sinking into a warm bath.

Steve had chalked it up to other things. The butter cooling his coffee, heating element going out on the water heater, warmer air, and water temps…but what if it was something else? Was it possible that something in the warehouse had damaged his nerves or fucked with his sense of temperature? Steve tried to ignore the thoughts, to deal with them later, but the looks the team gave him, mingled worry and sympathy, as they filed out a few hours later showed that he hadn’t been successful.

“Everything alright babe, you’ve been kind of distant, distracted?” Danny asked once everyone else was gone. They were in the kitchen packing away leftovers and tidying up. Steve opened his mouth, intent on telling Danny everything was fine but when he looked at Danny, who was looking at him with such worry and care, he found that he couldn’t lie.

“I know the hospital cleared us Danny but I think something happened to me in the warehouse. I picked up that pan for Tani earlier like it was nothing. I didn’t even realize it was still hot until she told me. I put it down and my hand was fine,” Steve held up his hands to show off his palms as he spoke, “There’s more. Stuff that I didn’t think about until that happened.” Steve explained about the coffee, showers, and his swims. Saying it out loud made Steve feel like he was crazy but Danny just nodded along and once he was done he could have sworn Danny looked…relieved?

“Babe…come here.” Danny moved to the stove and clicked on one of the burners. Steve moved to his side and watched as the glass-top turned a cherry-red as the element heated up. Steve was just about to ask what Danny was doing when his friend lifted a hand and pressed his palm flat against the glowing circle. Steve gave a cry of shock and grabbed Danny’s wrist to yank his hand away but Danny kept his hand pressed firmly down for a full minute before he let Steve jerk it away.

“Danny what the hell are you doing, we got to get you to the hospital.” Steve babbled, trying to drag Danny to the door. He hadn’t looked at his friend’s hand, didn’t want to see the smooth skin blistered and burned. Just the idea of it stirred horrible images in his mind. Danny burned and broken…the two of them surrounded by fire.

“Steve, Steve stop…Look at my hand.” Danny ordered firmly, planting his feet so Steve couldn’t move him. Without thought, Steve did as he was told and, cradling Danny’s hand in both of his, surveyed the damage. Except there was no damage. Danny’s hand, save for being a rapidly fading pink, was fine.

“I didn’t even feel it. I mean I did but it didn’t _burn_. It was like warming your hands around a campfire. Warm, comforting, but not burning. Yesterday I was making pasta for the kids. I was barefoot and stepped on one of Charlie’s legos. Dropped a whole pot of boiling water. It splashed all over my feet and legs. It was like sitting in a warm bath. I thought I was going crazy but then you told me what had happened to you…” Danny trailed off quietly as he brought up his free hand to stroke Steve’s arm. It was only then that Steve took notice of the tingling warmth that radiated from where their skin touched.

“Danny…what the hell is happening to us?” Steve asked quietly.

“I don’t know babe. But whatever it is…it happened in the fire.” Danny told him in a quiet voice and Steve nodded in agreement before speaking up.

“Whatever it is Danny. Whatever is happening, we’ll get through it together. Me and you. Just like we always have.” Steve promised firmly.

Danny looked up at him with wet eyes and a soft smile before taking his hand from Steve’s grip and pulling him into a hug. Steve held him in return, bringing a hand up to rest on the back of Danny’s neck where he rested his head on his shoulder. The position gave Steve a strange sense of Deja-vu as not-quite-there images formed in his mind.

“I…I don’t remember what happened. Not really,” Danny spoke quietly against his neck. The feeling of lips against his skin made Steve shiver, “But since the water…, I’ve had this image in my head. I don’t want…I _can’t_ talk about it all yet…it’s too much. But there is one part I want to tell you about. One part that I _want_ to be real.”

“You can tell me anything Danno.” Steve swallowed past the lump in his throat before responding.

Instead of speaking though Danny pulled away a bit and, after untucking Steve’s shirt, tugged at the hem with a significant look. Steve lifted his arms without hesitation and let Danny pull it off and set it aside. Danny ran his hands up his sides, leaving trails of heat in their wake before he leaned down and pressed a kiss to Steve’s chest.

“Love you, Steve.” Danny’s voice was little more than a whisper and as it faded away an image blossomed in Steve’s mind. A single, beautiful second of time surrounded by darkness that was still locked away. Steve didn’t want those memories. Not now. Maybe not ever. Letting the single second guide him Steve brought his hands up and cradled Danny’s head before pressing a kiss to the crown of Danny’s head.

“I love you too Danno. I love you so much.” Steve whispered as tears welled up in his eyes.

A second later Danny was holding tightly to him and crying into his skin, face pressed against his neck. Steve held on just as tight and let the tears fall. He didn’t care about what else had happened. Didn’t care if he ever remembered. Whatever it was had given him this, given him Danno. That was enough.

They ended up in Steve’s bed that night. Naked save for their boxer-briefs, (Steve was thankful that Junior had “escorted” Tani home as they had left a trail of clothes through the house), they spent hours just kissing, touching and talking. Late in the night, curled into each other and on the cusp of sleep, Danny murmured to him about dreams he had been having since the warehouse. Dreams about fire. Not about _the_ fire but just fire in general. Fire and lava and volcanos. They didn’t frighten him, he said, they were just images and scenes. But that wasn’t all. The fiery scenes had always been accompanied by the image of a woman. Danny never saw her face, only her long dark hair and her red dress. The few details of the woman were familiar to Steve in a way he couldn’t place but he hadn’t mentioned it to Danny.

If it was important he would remember.

***

Steve was just finishing the last stretch of his morning run and was on the way home. By now Danny was probably awake and working on breakfast. It had been two weeks since the barbeque, two weeks since he and Danny had discovered their apparent immunity to fire. They didn’t understand it, nor had they told anyone about it. What would they even say if they _did_? No, they had decided it was better to keep it between them unless it caused a problem and so far the only issue it caused was their showers weren't quite hot enough anymore.

That was ok though. He and Danny had no trouble heating them up. Danny and he spent most of their time together now with Danny spending most nights at his place. It was a little awkward at first, with Junior living with him, but they learned pretty quickly to keep the PDA to a minimum when the younger SEAL was around. It helped that Junior was spending a lot of time with both Tani and his parents lately. The Warehouse Incident, as they all had taken to calling it when it was brought up, seemed to have encouraged him to mend fences with his pop. Steve was glad for that, and for his growing connection to Tani, but he hoped that Junior didn’t feel the need to move out. It was something that Steve needed to work out. He didn’t want Junior to feel like he was being pushed out. His house was big enough for him and Danny.

Now when Danny moved in, which Steve was totally going to make happen when the time was right, things might need to change. But that was probably awhile away. Steve was so engrossed in the thoughts of having Danny and the kids in his home that, as he rounded the corner to his street, he nearly mowed down an old lady.

“Auntie, I’m so sorry. I was distracted. Are you ok?” Steve apologized after ducking around the woman at the last minute.

“Oh, I’m fine young man. But you really should be more careful. You never know what could happen.” She replied with a piercing gaze and a warm smile. Steve smiled in return as he took the old lady in. She was a little stooped in the shoulders but still nearly as tall as him with silver hair that was like a long, shiny waterfall down her back. She was dressed in a long, red and white Hawaiian patterned dress that covered her feet and was carrying a small white dog in her arms. Steve was sure he didn’t know her but she was still familiar.

“I’m sorry, I don’t mean to stare,” Steve spoke suddenly when he realized that was exactly what he was doing, “It’s just…have we met? You look familiar.” It was an awkward question to ask a stranger but Danny _did_ frequently call him an animal.

She didn’t seem to mind though. She just smiled and gave a small laugh.

“You never know dear, maybe we have, once upon a time.” She replied and Steve just smiled in return.

“Well, it was nice to meet you. I better be getting home for breakfast. I’m sorry again.” Steve said and the old woman nodded in return. As Steve resumed his jog the old woman called out again.

“Remember dear, do be more careful. You and that handsome fellow of yours.” Steve stopped dead in his tracks and turned back to the old woman only to find her gone. A chill ran up Steve spine as half-remembered stories from his childhood crept into his mind.

Steve just shook his head though and pushed them away. He had enough weird shit going on in his life without adding a strange old woman to the mix. She was probably a neighbor he hadn’t met. There had been a few new people to move into the neighborhood in the last few years.

Besides Steve had more important things to think about. Like if he could convince Danny to join him in his post-breakfast shower. He felt pretty confident that he could.

***

Once more young and dark-haired Pele watched from Steven’s private beach as he entered his home and make his way to Daniel. They would be obscured to human eyes of course but wood and mortar were no barrier for her. She watched as Steven entered his dining room to find Daniel, finished with his breakfast, and reading a newspaper. She smiled as Steven draped himself over the back to the chair, and by extension Daniel’s shoulders, and press a kiss to his temple.

They exchanged words but Pele felt no inclination to listen in. She could, if she so desired, but she found watching them to be enough. She could not help but laugh as Steven slipped under the loose collar of Daniel’s t-shirt. Danny squawked something at Steve in obvious indignation but he made no move to remove Steven’s hand. Indeed as Steven obviously stroked his chest and stomach Danny brought a hand up to tangle in Steven’s sweaty hair before bringing their lips together in a heated kiss.

As Danny stood up and the two tumbled into one another Pele turned and took her leave. She enjoyed watching but she was not a voyeur. As she strolled along the shore, ‘Uhane at her side, she could not help but think on her two warriors. They were a beautiful Aikane and Pele intended to ensure they have many years together. She was loath to admit it, nor would she do it aloud, but Kanaloa was correct. There were consequences to her revival of the pair.

Pele lived in their flesh now, she would always be aware of them, no matter where they went. Even if they left her beloved Hawaii. Her power in their veins made them immune to fire and burning heat, something they already discovered. She hoped that would be a boon for their work on the islands and beyond.

She hoped that Steven had taken her admonishment to be careful to heart. She would always watch over them but she would be limited in what she could do to aid them now. Still, she would do all she could. They were Nā Lāne o Pele now, after all.

**Author's Note:**

> I fully plan to expand this at a later date. There is a lot more lore and mysticism I would like to add but couldn't for brevity's sake. Hope you all enjoyed it. I had a lot of fun writing it.  
Find me on tumblr @ https://mcdannoangelwolf.tumblr.com
> 
> Pele= Goddess of Fire, Lava, and Volcanos. Heralded as the Creatress of the Hawaiian Islands.  
Kanaloa=According to my research he is, amongst other things, a God of the Underworld. I needed a God of the Dead and he was the only one that presented itself.  
'Uhane=Hawaiian for "Spirit".  
Lani=Hawaiian for Heaven.  
Aikane=Meanings of this vary. Pre-Colonial Aikane, according to my research, could mean either a Same-Sex relationship, (most between men I think), OR be used to denote individuals IN a Same-Sex relationship. Post-Colonial it was sanitized to mean Friend/Best Friend/Life friend etc. I went with Pre-Colonial meanings.  
Nā Lāne o Pele=Men/Warriors of Pele.
> 
> I did my utmost best to be thorough and respectful but I am open to notes on my usage on my use of Hawaiian Culture and Mythology for the expansion.


End file.
